Washington D.C./21.03.23/Turan: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday spoke to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to "offer continued U.S. assistance in facilitating bilateral peace discussions with Azerbaijan," the State Department said, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.
"Secretary Blinken thanked Prime Minister Pashinyan for Armenia’s continued commitment to peace and encouraged concrete steps forward in finding solutions to outstanding issues," Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said in a readout of the call.
Blinken "reiterated U.S. support for direct talks and diplomacy to support a lasting and sustainable peace in the South Caucasus and stressed that there is no military solution," Patel added.
Blinken is expected to engage with Azerbaijan's Ilham Aliyev in the coming days, TURAN was informed by diplomatic sources.
The move comes as the top State Department diplomat in charge of Europe and Eurasia policy was announced on Monday to be stepping down by the end of this month.
Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Karen Donfried leaving an important post empty as Washington works to keep its allies focused on supporting Russia's annexation policy in its neighborhood.
"Karen has deftly managed our relationships with many of our most important allies and partners at a time when Kremlin aggression threatened decades of peace and prosperity," Blinken said in a statement.
"Her policy acumen, integrity, and drive defined her leadership as Assistant Secretary and represent the highest values of public service," Blinken added.
Meanwhile, another Assistant Secretary of state, Michele Sison, who is in charge of International Organization Affairs, is slated to visit Azerbaijan next week.
The State Department on Monday laid out the trip as follows: "Assistant Secretary Sison will travel to Antananarivo, Madagascar, March 22 before traveling to Johannesburg, South Africa, March 24 and Port Louis, Mauritius, March 27. The Assistant Secretary will then travel to Baku, Azerbaijan, March 29, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, March 31, Hanoi, Vietnam, April 4, Bangkok, Thailand, April 5, and Vientiane, Laos, April 6-7,"
Throughout her trip, the Assistant Secretary will discuss "areas of current and potential multilateral cooperation, including in the context of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and tackling transnational challenges, including climate change, food insecurity, and global health security," the Department said.
Alex Raufoglu
Politics
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